Anniversary
by SirIntegrity
Summary: Alucard acts human for reasons he himself doesn't understand, remembering such a trivial thing as an anniversary. Please R&R.


Alucard didn't typically celebrate any occasion. Every day was the same to him, each as uneventful and meaningless as the day before. But it struck him, as he gazed up at the moon, that it was the anniversary of the date he had been set free from his long, long imprisonment.

He closed his eyes. He hadn't felt the coldness, of course, of the cement basement, but he had felt the constraints of the straight jacket. As though they had expected such a thing to keep him if he really wanted to break free. Nothing, nothing in the world could stop him if he decided to leave his master.

Nothing, except for his honor. He had lost to Abraham, and he acknowledged this, and was now continuing to pay for his defeat a hundred years later. Putting up with hardly competent masters that continued to disappoint him time and time again, causing him to loose more and more faith in the Hellsing name. He supposed they looked rather mighty to men or vampires on the outside, but he saw how they were when the curtains were drawn and the show was over. They acted rather disgracefully, but he bit his tongue like a good servant.

Then, just as he lost hope in the future of Hellsing, Abraham's honor resurfaced. His glossed over corpse eyes had glanced up after her wonderful blood had awoken him from his sleep. It had shocked him to see a young girl, barely old enough to begin her changes into a woman, kneeled before him, her desperation quietly singing to him the song to wake the dead. She had even brought down dinner with her; not exactly five-star rating, but what did humans know about blood?

He tested her, taunted her. And he would never forget the words that reminded him of the pride of the Hellsing name, and of the honorable Abraham himself.

"I am the lord and master of the Hellsing family, Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing. I would die before letting a vampire order me...I'll never give up! I would die before giving up! That is my duty and pride as the leader of the Hellsing Organization!"

Not to mention how many bullets she pumped into him previous to that statement.

Integra continued, time after time, to prove that she was worthy of his power under her. How she faced the odds with unshakable courage and a never-surrender attitude, how even when he knew she didn't feel very brave, she put on her game face and stared the enemy in the eye. She was a man among men, a true warrior and a fearless leader. Sometimes he wondered if she was too fearless; to never show weakness was a weakness in itself. But he admired her and her incredible strength. Her intent drove him.

Nothing, nothing in the world could stop him if he decided to leave the Hellsing Organization. Except for his honor, and her. The iron maiden.

Alucard sauntered back dejectedly to the Hellsing Mansion. The vampire he had been sent to fight had such horrible blood, just the smell nauseated him. He hadn't had delicious, rich blood in who knew how long. It was times like these he could almost taste her blood again, warm and sweet like liquid dark chocolate on his tongue. How fitting that the only human he couldn't have was the one he craved the most.

He stopped himself from branching off of the thought. If he tried to figure out if his master truly cared for him based off of her cryptic words, he would drive himself even more insane than he was already. He knew that if he did find out, that she did indeed love him, he wouldn't be able to control himself. And the one thing Sir Integra couldn't stand the most was becoming a vampire.

What kind of fool would love him, anyway, knowing how practically everything he touched died?

Usually Alucard didn't use the stairs; he just phased down into his room in the basement. But tonight, he felt especially vulnerable and human due to his acknowledgement to something as trivial as an anniversary of the day he began to serve Sir Integra. And, as though materializing from his thoughts, she appeared walking down the hallway towards the staircase.

She looked at him evenly, not shocked at all by his early return. Something about his presence troubled her, though, he could sense her anxiety.

"You're using the stairs," she pointed out the obvious, curling the end to turn it into a question. He shook his head dismissively.

"Just...thinking."

"A dangerous thing for you," she teased. He smirked in agreement, and then sighed.

"Integra?"

"Yes, Alucard?"

"Do you feel there's something special about tonight? Something...noteworthy?" She pursed her lips and thought for a minute.

"New moon?" He brushed past her.

"Never mind," he muttered. Integra cared about occasions about as much as he did. Why would he expect her to remember the anniversary of what to her must have been a nightmare?

He stopped. Integra's heart pounded.

"Why are you in the basement in the first place?" He asked. She liked going down to the basement about as much as Alucard liked bathing in holy water.

"It's none of your concern," she snapped, jogging up the stairs.

A horrible night was just getting worse. Killing a vampire that he couldn't even drag out because he was so weak, and not being able to drink his putrid blood. He was having human feelings, remembering anniversaries and thinking about his master in a romantic way. Sir Integra didn't remember their anniversary and for some odd reason it was grating at his nerves. To top it all off, she seemed to be in a fine mood until he went and questioned her about being in the basement.

He opened his bedroom door...and the scent of delicious, rich blood filled his nostrils. For a minute, he just stood there with his eyes closed, breathing in the wonderful smell, not wanting to break the delusion. He opened his eyes and found a dish with blood set out for him, a bloody knife lain across a card. Alucard's stomach growled.

Curious, he picked up the card.

"_In recognition for all you've done, for me and my family. I know I do not thank you enough. I hope this will suffice. Enjoy._" There was no buts about it, the card was in Integra's handwriting.

Alucard trembled in anticipation. He didn't bother with the silverware; he dunked his mouth into the still-warm liquid. Oh god. Oh god. He thought as he reveled in the warmth, the flavor. He drank slowly, enjoying every drop, savoring his supper. Oh god. Oh god. This was a pleasant surprise. Such a nice meal. Such a lovely meal.

He licked the dish, the knife, and his face clean of every last cell, not wasting any of his gift. It had been the best he had had in a long, long time and it hit the spot that had been void for so long. The only problem was, for a No-Life King appetite such as his, it didn't fill him up.

&

Integra rubbed at her arm. That had been painful. But she reminded herself that she knew nothing of the pain Alucard must have suffered for her and her family.

The reaction on his face when he thought she had forgotten...priceless. Heartretching, because he looked so sad, but priceless because she had tricked him. She had tried to keep her heartbeat low, but when Alucard stopped...she thought it had been all over, that he was going to ask her why she smelled like she had just bled. But he simply asked why she was in the basement. She had stormed away, feeling ridiculous for what she had done. Walter would have killed her if he would have known.

Because, to him, giving Alucard her blood was just a sampler, a teaser of what he couldn't have. She was sure this was the way he saw it as well. But she saw it as a token of gratitude, a treat for a job well done. How much blood had he spilled for her?

It was foolish. Giving Alucard some of her blood was like handing him an invitation to bite her. But what other gift could possibly carry the genuine gratitude she felt for his services. Words? They were just air. Money or possessions? Meant nothing to him. Power? Had plenty, or could just do whatever he pleased anyway.

Integra tried not to jump as Alucard, for the first time in months, used the door. He was feeling human tonight, wasn't he?

He tipped the empty dish towards her, his face as pleading as he could muster, and said in his most innocent voice, "Please, Sir, may I have some more?"


End file.
